Apparatus for positioning records

ABSTRACT

An arrangement for controlling the positioning of a record, typically for controlling the position of a sheet in relation to a line printer, by means of a program tape advanced in synchronism with the record is described. The program tape is advanced under control of an impulse-driven electric motor, the driving pulses for the motor being derived from a pulse generator included within the record feeding arrangement. The program tape carries perforations indicative of those positions in which the record is to be stopped for the purpose, for example, of receiving lines of print. The perforations in the tape are sensed photoelectrically to control the record feeding arrangement. A two-speed drive is used to feed the record and in one embodiment, which uses two tape-sensing stations, the record, if it is being fed at the higher speed, is slowed down in response to the output from one (advanced) sensing station and is finally brought to rest in response to the output from the second sensing station. In starting up the record-feeding device, a circuit arrangement using a counter is employed. The record movement is started at the slower speed and the counter permits the movement to continue at the higher speed provided that a stop signal is not sensed from the tape within a distance determined by the capacity of the counter. In another embodiment a third tape-sensing station is added to provide more advanced information on the occurrence of a stop signal in the tape, and the record-feeding device is coupled to the higher speed drive upon starting unless a stop signal is detected within the area of tape scanned by the advanced sensing stations.

United States Patent Inventors Primary Examiner Ernest T. Wright, Jr.A!!0rneyHane & Baxley ABSTRACT: An arrangement for controlling thepositioning of a record, typically for controlling the position of asheet in relation to a line printer, by means of a program tape advancedin synchronism with the record is described. The program tape isadvanced under control of an impulse-driven electric motor, the drivingpulses for the motor being derived from a pulse generator includedwithin the record feeding arrangement. The program tape carriesperforations indicative of those positions in which the record is to bestopped for the purpose, for example, of receiving lines of print. Theperforations in the tape are sensed photoelectrically to control therecord feeding arrangement.

A two-speed drive is used to feed the record and in one embodiment,which uses two tape-sensing stations, the record, if it is being fed atthe higher speed, is slowed down in response to the output from one(advanced) sensing station and is finally brought to rest in response tothe output from the second sensing station. In starting up therecord-feeding device, a circuit arrangement using a counter isemployed. The record movement is started at the slower speed and thecounter permits the movement to continue at the higher speed providedthat a stop signal is not sensed from the tape within a distancedetermined by the capacity of the counter.

In another embodiment a third tape-sensing station is added to providemore advanced information on the occurrence ofa stop signal in the tape,and the record-feeding device is coupled to the higher speed drive uponstarting unless a stop signal is detected within the area of tapescanned by the advanced sensing stations.

[2]] Appl. No. 708,922 [22] Filed Feb. 28, 1968 [45] Patented Aug. 10,1971 [73] Assignee International Computers and Tabulators LimitedLondon, England [32] Priority Mar. 8, 1967 [33] Great Britain [31]10,793/67 [54] APPARATUS FOR POSITIONING RECORDS 2 Claims, 6 DrawingFigs.

[52] 11.8. CI 197/133 [51] Int. Cl B41j 15/00 [50] Field of Search197/19, 20, 133,133 F,134;226/9 [56] References Cited UNITED STATESPATENTS 2,747,717 5/1956 Cunningham et a1 197/133 2,872,025 2/1959Thienemann 197/20 X 2,884,852 5/1959 Saltz 197/133 X 3,042,178 7/1962West 197/133 3,043,589 7/1962 Folmar 197/133 X 3,094,261 6/1963 Thompson197/133 X 3,176,819 4/1965 Bloom etal... 197/133 3,452,853 7/1969 Mabon197/133 II 1 I1 1 I f K A W P H W. S 8 U 8 /4| 19H 7 O D 2 s D- M 7 A u00 LN /L 0 44h. H I I m 1 5 0 an 5 2 b SHEET 1 OF 2 ,[LJIII I PATENTEDAUG 1 012m FIG .1.

r/// rf/ EN TORS E- i n 1561 PATENTED mm 0 I871 PPuNTER SHEET 2 BF 2 AMPAnd?

FIGB.

I ATTORNEYS APPARATUS FOR POSITIONING RECORDS BACKGROUND OF THEINVENTION The present invention relatesto apparatus for positioningrecords, and in particular to apparatus used in conjunction withprinting apparatus for positioning documents and other stationary duringa sequence of printing operations.

Record feeding merely by a drive having driving inputs respectivelyrunning at more than one speed have previously been proposed, forexample, as shown in US. Pat. No. 3,315,860. It has also previously beenproposed to use a program tape which is sensed photoelectrically tocontrol the positioning'of a record in relation to .a line printer, asshown, for example, in US. Pat. No. 2,747,717.

Hitherto, the synchronization of the tape-advancing device with therecord feeding means has involved the use of fairly complex mechanicalgearing trains. Moreover, in relation to modern high-speed devices, ofwhich output printers for use with high-speed data processingdevices'are typical, it is highly desirable to take as little time aspossible in merely moving the record from oneprinting position to thenext in order to be able to employ the printing device for as great atime as possible actually in the operation of printing.

SUMMARY In order to improve the performance of the record-printingapparatus outlined in the preceding paragraph it is now an object of thepresent invention to simplify the manner in which the record and theprogram tape are maintained in synchronism. A further object of theinvention is to improve the manner in which a relatively highrecord-feeding speed is length of the tape, each station respectivelyproducing a signal in response to sensing of an indicium from said tape;means for feeding a record; two-speed driving means; coupling meansbetween said driving means and the record-feeding means, said couplingmeans being operable to transmit drive to the record-feeding means at aselected one of two speeds, the coupling means including means forgenerating electrical impulses at a frequency dependent upon theselected feed; means for applying said electrical impulses to said motorto synchronize movement of the record and said program tape; and controlmeans for operatingsaid coupling means, including means for selectingthe faster of said two speeds, speedmodifying means responsive to asignal produced by said first sensing station to modify the operation ofsaid coupling means to select the slower of said two speeds, and meansresponsive to a signal produced by said second sensing station todisable said coupling means to bring to rest a record being fed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIG. 1 shows, partly in schematic form,an arrangement for feeding and sensing a program tape, 1

FIG. 2 shows, partly in schematic form, an arrangement for feeding arecord,

FIG. 3 shows a sectional view of part of the arrangement of FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a block schematic circuit diagram of record positioningapparatus,

FIG. 5 is a sectional view showing a modification of part of thearrangement of FIG. 1, and

FIG. 6 is a block schematic diagram employing the modification of FIG.5.

Referring now to FIG. 1, a baseplate. l carries a bracket 2, holding alampholder 3 in which is a lamp 4. The'entire lampholder 3 and lamp 4are enclosed in a box 5 having an opening 6 in one side. The baseplate 1also supports a tape guide 7 substantially parallel with the side of thebox 5 having the opening 6. The end 7a of the guide 7 is slotted and iscurved to follow the periphery of a tape feeding sprocket wheel 8, thewheel 8 being accommodated in the slot of end 7a. The wheel 8 hasprojections 9 about its periphery, the projections 9 being arranged toengage with feed holes 11 in a program tape 10 in the conventionalmanner in the direction of arrow 62. The wheel 8 is mounted on the shaft12 of a stepping motor 13, which is secured by means of screws 14 to theopposite side of the baseplate 1; The screws 14 pass through slots 15 inthe baseplate l, the slots 15 allowing the angular adjustment of themotor 13, and hence of the sprocket wheel 8.

A pivot 16 carried by the baseplate 1 supports a bracket 17, which inturn supports a second tape guide 18 in a position normally spaced asmall distance away from the guide 7. The pivot 16 allows the guide 18to be swung away from the guide 7 to facilitate the loading of the tape10 into the device.

Between the opening 6 in the side of the box 5 and the guide 18 atransparent refracting block 19 is supported from the base plate 1. Theblock 19 has'a convex surface 19a facing towards the opening 6. Theopposite face of the block 19 is integrally formed into a pair ofsemicylindrical lenses 20 and 20a. The lenses 20 and 20a are parallel toeach other and are arranged at right angles to the longitudinal axis ofthe tape 10, so that light from the opening 6 is gathered by the block19, is divided into-two paths and each path is terminated byone of thelenses 20 and 20a to produce a pair of spaced-apart parallel bars oflight across the tape 10, apertures (not shown) provided being in theguide 18 to allow light to reach the tape 10. The positions of the barsof light at the tape 10 define the locations of a pair of spaced-apartsensing stations 111 and 112. Sensing station 111 contains a number ofphotocells, one of which is shown as photocell 58, and also containslens 20a. Similarly sensing station 112 contains a number of photocells,one of which is shown as photocell 59, and also contains lens 20. Thephotocells 58, 59 associated with each sensing station 111, 112 arearranged across the width of the tape 10. Thus, a number of photocellsassociated with sensing station 111, one photocell being shown asphotocell 58, are arranged across the width of tape All photocells 58,59 are mounted in block 21 which is mounted on a bracket 22 and securedto-the baseplate 1. The photoelectric cells 58 of station 111 areconnected to amplifiers 60 in the conventional manner, and those ofstation 112 are connected to amplifiers 61, to provide output signalsfor control purposes. I

Information is carried by the tape 10 in the form of perforations 23which may be arranged in tracks along the tape 10, and each sensingstation 111, 112 may be provided with a separate photoelectric cell 58,59, respectively for each track. Information carried by a program tape10 in this way is well known and consists, for example, of indiciarelating to .operations to be performed in the printing of a record 25under control of further apparatus associated with the tape readingarrangernent. A programtape 10 of this kind is, for example, commonlyused to control the program of printing required on a record 25 or otherdocument to be printed, and the indicia, such as the perforations 23,relates to positions at which the progress of the record 25 through theprinting apparatus is to be halted. In such cases it is usual to arrangethat the tape 10 is formed into a continuous loop. I

In the present apparatus, FIG. 2 shows an arrangement for feeding arecord 25. Referring now to this figure, a record 25 is fed by plate 24mounted on a shaft 26 which is driven by a pulley 27. The pulley 27 iscoupled by a belt 28 to a further pulley 29 mounted on a shaft 30. Theshaft 30 forms the output shaft of a coupling arrangement and is mountedin bearings 31 supported on a base 32.

A further shaft 33 is supported in bearings 85 axially in line with theshaft 30, and the shaft 33 is driven by a belt drive 34 from the shaft35 of a main drive motor 36. A conventional electromagnetic clutch 37 isinterposed between shafts and 33, so that upon electrical energizationof the clutch 37 drive is transmitted from the shaft 33 to the shaft 30.

A second clutching arrangement is provided in association with the shaft30, and this arrangement is shown in greater detail in FIG. 3. A bracket38 houses bearings 39 supporting a sleeve 40, and the sleeve 40 isdriven by means of pulley 41 and a belt 42 from motor shaft 35, themotor 36 having a doubIe-ended drive for this purpose, with the motorshaft and the motor 36 shown in FIG. 2. A pulley 101 is mounted on oneend of shaft 35 and is coupled to pulley 102 on shaft 33 by belt 34.Similarly, pulley 103 mounted on the other end of shaft 35 is coupled topulley 41 on a shaft 30 by belt 42. The reference numerals 41, 101, 102and 103 for convenience refer to the hubs of the respective pulleys withthe actual size of the pulleys being chosen such that sleeve rotates ata considerably greater speed than shaft 33. Thus, pulley 102 is largerthan a corresponding pulley 41, while pulleys 101 and 103 may be ofequal size, or pulley 103 may be larger than pulley 101. The pulleysystem described above is typical of a conventional apparatus fordriving two shafts, 30 and 33, at different speeds from a single driveshaft, 35, rotating at a constant speed. A conventional electromagneticclutch 43, similar to the clutch 37, is interposed between the sleeve 40and the shaft 30.

The construction of the clutch 43 is shown in greater detail in FIG. 3.An iron ring, or rotor 44 is secured to the sleeve 40. The ring 44 issurrounded by a ring coil 45 which is housed in a recessed iron member46, the member 46 being held stationary. An armature 47 is looselyfitted on splines 48 on the shaft 30. It will be seen that uponenergization of the coil 45, the armature 47 is attached towards thering 44, the recessed member 46 providing a magnetic circuit about thecoil 45. In the operated position the armature 47 is engaged by the ring44 so that the drive from the sleeve 40 is transmitted through the ring44 and the armature 47 to the shaft 30.

Thus, by appropriate selection of one of the clutches 37 or 43, theoutput shaft 30 may be driven at a low or high speed. A conventionalelectromagnetic brake 49 (FIG. 2) is provided on the shaft 30. The brake49 is similar in construction to the clutches 37 and 43 except that inthe case of the brake 49 the iron ring forming the rotor 44, asdescribed in the preceding paragraph, is held stationary by a worm drivewheel 56, the wheel 56 being prevented from rotating by a worm 57.

The shaft 30 also drives a pair of pulse generators each of which has atoothed wheel 50 of magnetic material secured to the shaft 30 andmounted in bearings 31a and 3117. Each wheel 50 is associated with asensing head SI supported on a bracket 52. Each toothed wheel 50together with its sensing head 51 forms a pulse generator ofthe kindcommonly termed a sonic wheel generator. The sensing head 51 may containa magnet and a pickup coil. In such a case, as the toothed wheel 50rotates with the shaft 30, the passage of a tooth past the sensing head51 modifies the magnetic field of the head 51 and a resultant electricalsignal is generated in the pickup of the head 51. The signals from theheads 51 are amplified by amplifiers 53 and the output from one of theseamplifiers 53 is selected by means of a switch 54 to be applied to anoutput line 55.

The sensing head bracket 52 is secured to the worm drive wheel 56 whichis loosely mounted on shaft 30, so that the wheel 56 may be adjustedabout the shaft 30 by rotation of the worm 57 to modify the timing ofthe signals applied to the line 55.

It will be seen that rotation of the wheel 56 at a time when the brake49 is effective causes the shaft 30 to be rotated by the same amount.This enables the extent of adjustment of the heads 51 to be observed inrelation to consequential movement of the record 25.

The line 55 (FIGS. land 2) is connected to the impulse driven motor 13of the tape-sensing arrangement so that movement of the tape 10 isalways synchronized to movement of the shaft 30 and hence to themovement of the record 25. The provision of two toothed wheels 50 on theshaft 30, the wheels 50 having teeth at different circumferentialpitches respectively, allows the relative feeding speeds of the tape 10and the record 25 to be altered to permit two alternative printing linespacing arrangements to be employed for the printing format of therecord 25, the particular line spacing to be effective at any time beingselected by the switch 54. The angular adjustment of the sensing heads51 by means of the wheel 56 allows the actual position of a printingline on the record 25 to be adjusted.

Operation of the arrangements shown in FIG. I and 2 will now bedescribed in greater detail with reference to the circuit diagram ofFIG. 4, which shows, in block schematic form, the record-positioningarrangement applied to a printing apparatus 63. The printing apparatus63 is arranged in conventional manner to print lines of characters inpredetermined line positions on a record 25 (FIG. 2) and the record 25is required to be positioned so that these lines are positioned in turnat a printing station, the selection of the required line positionsbeing under control of a format tape 10 (FIG. 1). The printing apparatus63 is arranged to produce a record movement initiating signal over aline 64 in the conventional manner, and this signal is required to causethe record 25 to be moved to bring a new line to rest at the printingstation. The speed of movement of the record 25 is dependent upon thespace between adjacent lines on which printing is required. If thisspace is below a predetermined length the movement is required to be ata slower speed, while for a longer movement of the record 25 themovement is required to be at a faster speed.

In the circuit arrangement shown in FIG. 4, the energizing coils for theslow speed clutch 37, the fast speed clutch 43 and the brake 49 of FIG.2 are represented, respectively, as coils 65, 66 and 67. The coils 65,66, 67 are respectively controlled by the outputs of flip-flops 68, 69and 70. The selection of the slower speed movement is controlled by anOR gate 71, the output of which is connected to a set input of flip-flop68 to energize the slow speed clutch coil 65, and also to reset inputsof flip-flops 69 and 70 to ensure that the fast speed clutch coil 66 andthe brake clutch coil 67 are both deenergized. The selection of thefaster speed is under control of a pulse counter 72, the output of whichis connected to a set input of flip-flop 69 to cause the fast clutchcoil 66 to be energized. The output of counter 72 is also connected to areset input of flip-flop 68 through an OR gate 73 to deenergize the slowspeed clutch coil 65. The flip-flop 70 is set to energize the brake coil67 under control of an AND gate 74, the output of which is also appliedto the OR gate 73 to reset flip-flop 68 and deenergize the slow speedclutch coil 65.

The AND gate 74 is controlled jointly by pulses on the line 55 and bythe output of amplifier 60. The pulses on the line 55 are derived fromthe pulse generator amplifier 53 (FIG. 2),

and are generated to represent all the possible printing line positionson the record 25 while the record 25 is being fed. A signal is producedby the amplifier 60 whenever a perforation 23 in the appropriate trackis sensed by photoelectric cell 58 (FIG. 1).

The photoelectric cell 59 is spaced away from the cell 58 in thedirection from which the record 25 is fed and therefore senses theperforation 23 in advance of the cell 58. The amplifier 61, to which thecell 59 is connected produces an output signal when the perforation 23is sensed by the coil 59. The output from the amplifier 61 (FIG. 4) isapplied to the slow speed control gate 71 and is also applied to reset aflip-flop 75. The flip-flop 75 is set by the movement initiating signalon line 64 and the set output of the flip-flop 75 is applied tocondition an AND gate 76 between the input of counter 72 and the pulsegenerator output line 55. Thus, the counter 72 is enabled by the settingof the flip-flop 75 to count pulses on the line 55 but is inhibited fromcounting by the resetting of theflip-flo'p 75 in responseto an output.signal from amplifier 61.

The counter 72.is preferably arrangedto produce an output signal aftercountingia number of pulses corresponding to the line-positionseparation of the sensing 111 and -112 represented by the photoelectriccells 58 and 59 (FIG..1). In the present example these photoelectriccells 58 and-59 are separated by a distance corresponding to the passageof three consecutive printing line. positions on. the record pasttheprinting-'position'of.theprinting apparatus 63, so that the counter 72(-FIG. produces an output after counting three pulses/The counter '72 isreset bya slow speed control signal from the gate 71.

. 1'1 .6. a have produced an outputbefore the stopsignal is-produced bythe amplifier 60. Hence the fast speed'co ntrol flip-flop 69 will nothave been set. If the next perforation 23 to be sensed isalready'positioned opposite the earlier sensing station 112, 'or iswithin a distance corresponding to three printing line positions of'it,then a signal from the-amplifier 6l'will be applied to reset theflip-flop 75 and render the AND' gate 76 inoperative to pass signals tothe input'of the counter 72. Thus, the counter The operation of theapparatus will now be considered.The

movement initiating signal from the printer 63 is applied over I line 64through OR gate 71 to set flip-flop 68 and to ensure thatflip-flops' 69and .70 arereset. Setting of the flip-flop 68 caules the slow speedclutch coil 65 .tobe energized. Energization of the coil65 causestheslow speed clutch 37 (FIG-.f 2) to be engaged,- and the i-record 25is movedat slowspeedby- -the drive fromthe shaft 33 through theclut'ch37, the shaft 30,.the belt drive 27 28, 29 to the p'laten 24.Therotationof the shaft also activates the pulse. generator .50, 51 toproduce pulses from 'an amplifier 53 .on line'55. These pulsesareQappliedto the motor l3'(FlG. 1) to advance'tlie program' tape .10past the tape sensing stations lll,-l12(photoelectric cells 58. and 59)and are alsoapplied to the control circuit (FIG. 4,).

' The initiating signal passed by the OR gate 71 is also applied toresetlthe'counte r 72 to zero, and at the same time the initiatingsignal is applied directly'frorn the printer 63 to set the 72 isinhibited before itcan produce an output 'sothat once again the movementof} the record 25 at high speedis prevented. t

" The'purpose of the control arrangements described is to ensure thatthe record feeding unit is broughtto rest only'from 1 slow speedoperation, in order that the possibility of poor posimay be, modified,as shown in FIG. 5, by the addition ofathird sensing station l15., Asshown in FIG. 5,"the.block 21a carries sensing station 111hayingphotoelectric' cells58in the same way as before. Adjacent thephotoelectriccells 58 is intermediate-sensing station 114 havingphotoelectric cells 77. The

intermediatestation1-14 has a lens 78-arranged to scan an flip-flop 75.The set output'of flipeflop 75 opensAND'gate76 andallows the-pulsesfromline to pass to the counter 72.

The counter 72 countsthe pulses and if: by the time the third pulse hasbeen counted'no perforation 23 has been sensed by areaacrossthe tape 10having ailength along the tape 10 cor responding to three linep'ositionsofthe record 25. The

the I'ta'pesensing stations 111 and lj12, thecounter -72. T

produces anoutputsignal which. is applied directly to set flip:v

flop 69,, and through an OR gate 73 to reset flip-flop 68-. Theflip-flops 68 and 69 then cause the slow speed clutch coil .65 to H bedeenergized and-the ,fast'speed clutch coil 66 to .beenergizedrespectively with the result that. the feeding speed of the record 25 isincreased.

., who swt sti hfi athe sm. as m id--;i aq.=,- tected the;earliesnsenling (station.- 112; one ot thp.

. photoelectric cells ss or this station {112; produces a signalwhich.is arnplifiedfbythe .amplifl st (1-16. 4). An output, signal fromthe amplifier 61-is passed'throughOR gate .71 to sensingstation 115adjacent the intermediate station 114 has photoelectric cells- 79 aridalens 80 which scans an'iadjacent area of tape 10 similar inJsizetothatscanned by the lens-78.

' Lens'8 0 is displaced from lens 78 in the'direction from-whichthe'tape 10 is advanced, the direction of tapelad'vancje being shown byarrow 62a. in order to illuminate the areas of tape 10 scanned by thelenses -78 an d 80, the light-reflecting block 19 is modified to providethree lenses 181, 281, and 381associated with sensing stations 111', l14and 115, respectively,

set the flip-flop 68 once more and to reset the flip flop 69. The

signalfrom theORgate '7l also passes to thereset inputs of j theflip-flop?!) and the counter 72. Since, however, the flip:

flop 70 is already reset, the reapplication of a signal to its input isredundant. Similarly, the resetting of the counter 72 isa redundantoperation-in this case. The setting of the flip-flop 68 reenergl'zes theslow speed clutch .coil 65, and the resetting of the'flip-flop 69deenergizes the fast speed clutch coil 66', with the result that thefeeding speed of the record 25 is once again decreased. v w 7 When thetape perforation 23 is detected by photoelectric ce'll 58'ofthe later.sensing station 111, as shown in'FlG, 1,-a stop signalis produced bythe amplifier'60 (FIGS. 1 and 4) and is passed through AND gate 74, whengate 74 is conditioned by an impulse on the line 55, to set theflip-flop and throughthe 0R g'ate.73 to reset the flip-flop 68. Thus theslow 6S energized bringing the record 25 to rest with the line positionrepresented by the tape perforation 23 at the printing position. ltwilljbe apparent that the'record movement is'started'at speed clutchcoil is' d'eenergized and the brake coil 67 is slowsp'eed, and only ifthe next perforation 23 in the tape 10is spaced more than by'a'distancerepresenting six line positions is the fast speed vclutch43 brought intooperation. if the next perforation 23 to be sensed by the later sensingstation 111 in the, tape advancing unit.(FlG. 3) lies betweenthe'sensing sta tion 11l and 112 whenrecord feeding is initiated, thecounter 72 will not have recorded a count of three,-and willthus not;

instead of the two previooslyreferred to. The photoelectric fcelll58,77,79 areconnected'respectivelyto-amplifiers 60, [82,:and 83,-asshownin FIG. 6, whichshows in schematic form a modified control circuit.

ln. this e'ircuit the, slow speed flip-flop 68 is set under control ofan ORgate 84', the output of which also resets the fast speed flip-flop69and the brakeflip-flop70 through an OR gate 86. The fast speedflip-flop 69 is set under control of'an AND gate 87 the output of whichalso resets the slow speed flip-flop 68 and the brake flip-flop 70through an OR gate 86. The brake flip-flop 70 is set under control of anAND gate 89, the output of which also resets the slow speed clutchflip-flop 68.

v The slow speed control OR gate 84 is controlled byan AND gate or by.an AND gate 91. AND gate 90 is conditioned by u I signals derived fromamplifiers '82'or'83 through an OR gate 92'. The output of the OR gate92 is also inverted by an in- --verter 93 and the inverted output ispassed to condition AND 6 gate 87. The initiating signal lin'e64 fromthe printer 63 is connected to both AND gates 87 and 90.

- The AND gate 89 is conditioned by the output from amplifier 60,while'the AND gate 91 is conditioned'by the output from the amplifier82. Pulses from the pulse generator (wheels 50 and receiving heads 51 inFIG; 2) in the record feeding control unit (FIG. :2) are passed overline55(FIGS. 2 and 6) u to both AND gates 89 and 91.

In operation, the feed initiating signal from the printer 63 is 8 passedto AND gates 87 and 90. If a tape perforation 23 is f present in theareas of tape"10 scanned by 'either'of the advanced tape-sensingstations 114, 1 15 (photoelectric cells 77,

79) atthistime, the amplifier-[82 or the amplifier 83 will be producingan output signal. A"resultant signal will appear at the output of ORgate 92 to condition AND gate 9 0 to pass the initiating signal fromline 64. This condition causes the slow speed fliplflop 68 to be set toenergize the slow speed clutch 37. If, on the other hand, no tapeperforation 23 is present at either of the advanced sensing stations 114and 115, neither amplifier 82 nor amplifier 83 will be producing anoutput. Thus, there will be no output from OR gate 92 to condition ANDgate 90. In the absence of an output from OR gate 92, however, theinverter 93 will produce an output to condition AND gate 87 to pass theinitiating signal from line 64 to set the fast speed flip-flop 69 andenergize the high-speed clutch coil 66.

Thus, in dependence upon whether or not there is a perforation 23 withina distance representing six line positions of the advanced tape sensingstations 114, 115 at the time when the initiating signal is produced bythe printer 63, either the slow or fast speed drive respectively, isdirectly selected to feed the record 25.

As in the previous case, when a perforation 23 is sensed by one of thephotoelectric cells 77, the output of a signal from the amplifier 82 isapplied through AND gate 91 and OR gate 84 to set the slow speedflip-flop 68 and to reset the fast speed flip-flop 69 to ensure that thespeed of feeding is reduced to the slower speed before feeding isstopped. If the slower speed of feeding has already been selected byvirtue of the starting condition, then this slowdown operation isredundant.

When a perforation 23 is detected at the tape-sensing station 111, anoutput from amplifier 60 through AND gate 89 sets the brake flip-flop 70and resets the slow speed flip-flop 68 to bring the record 25 to rest.

It will be appreciated that the modified sensing arrangement of FIG.permits the direct selection of the higher speed feeding of the record25 without the need for the initial slower speed start as described withreference to the sensing arrangement of FIG. 1. However, the use of thecounter 72 shown in FIG. 4 serves the same purpose as the advancedsensing station 115 of FIG. 5 in determining the minimum distancebetween perforations 23 on the tape for which a higher speed feedingoperation is altogether inhibited. Thus, if it is required to alter thisminimum distance either the capacity of the counter 72 may be altered,or the extent of the area of tape 10 alongthe tape 10 scanned by thephotoelectric cells 79 may be altered. Again, the distance that theearlier sensing station 112 of FIG. 1 is displaced from the finalstation 111 effectively determines the deceleration time allowed forbringing the record 25 to rest, as does the extent of the area along thetape 10 scanned by the photoelectric cells 77 of FIG. 5. Thus if it isrequired to alter this deceleration period, the spacing of the sensingstations 112 and 111 of FIG. 1 may be altered, or the extent of the areascanned by the photoelectric cells 77 of FIG. 5 may be altered.

The description above has referred to the presence of a perforation inthe tape in relation to a line of photoelectric cells at each station,and that a single amplifier for each station has been described. It willbe realized that in practice a number of tracks are provided across thetape and perforations may be recorded in any of these tracks, theparticular function of the perforation being dependent upon the track inwhich it occurs, in the conventional manner. Thus, in dependence uponthe particular printing operation to be performed various ones of thetracks may be recognized as carrying record-arresting signals. For thesake of simplicity only a single amplifier has been referred to in thepresent description for each station, the amplifier being regarded as asource of any signals derived from the tracks for the purpose ofarresting the feeding of the record. It will be appreciated that, inpractice, a more complex arrangement requiring the use of more than oneoutput amplifier for each station may be used. However, all feed-stopsignals derived from any track would be applied in the way described tocontrol the selection of record feeding speeds.

It will be also apparent that although the use of a perforated tape hasbeen described, other forms of indicia than perforations may be used.For example, a paper tape may carry optically detectable marks or amagnetic pro ram tape may carry magnetically recorded indicia, in whiccase the sensing devices at the sensing stations would be magneticsensing heads instead of the photoelectric cells described.

We claim:

1. A record-position-controlling apparatus, including a program tapebearing at least one indicium, means for advancing said program tape ina direction parallel to its length; a motor operable in response toelectrical impulses coupled to drive said tape-advancing means, firstand second sensing stations spaced apart along the length of the programtape; each station respectively producing a signal in response tosensing of an indicium from said program tape, means for feeding arecord; two-speed driving means; coupling means between said drivingmeans and the record feeding means; said coupling means being operableto transmit drive to the record feeding means at a selected one of thetwo speeds, the coupling means including means for generating electricalimpulses at a frequency dependent upon the selected speed; means forapplying said electrical impulses to said motor to synchronize movementof the record and said program tape; and control means for operatingsaid coupling means; including speed-modifying means responsive to asignal produced by said first sensing station and to said electricalimpulses to modify the operation of said coupling means to select theslower of said two speeds and means responsive to a signal produced bysaid second sensing station and to said electrical impulses to disablesaid coupling means to bring to rest a record being fed; a third sensingstation spaced away from said second sensing station in the directionfrom which the tape is advanced, said third sensing station producing asignal in response to sensing of an indicium from the tape; and meansfor producing a record movement initiating signal; said control meansfurther including means responsive to said initiating signal to selectthe faster of said two speeds in the absence of signals produced by bothsaid first and third sensing stations and to select the slower of saidtwo speeds if a signal is produced by at least one of the first andthird sensing stations concurrently with said initiating signal.

2. Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 including a printer operable to printcharacters in predetermined line on a record fed by said record-feedingmeans, the printer being arranged to print at a predetermined printingposition a single line of characters in one operation; in which saidelectrical impulses correspond respectively one to each of the lines onthe record in which characters may be printed; in which the program tapecarries indicia corresponding to lines in which characters are requiredto be printed; in which said second sensing station is so positionedrelative to the program tape that in response to the occurrence of asignal produced by said second sensing station the record is brought torest with the corresponding line at said printing position; and in whichsaid first and third sensing stations are spaced away from said secondsensing station in the direction from which said program tape isadvanced respectively to scan successive areas of the program tapeadjacent the second sensing station, said successive areas eachextending along the length of the tape to a distance corresponding to atleast twice the spacing between adjacent ones ofsaid line positions onthe record in which characters may be printed.

1. A record-position-controlling apparatus, including a program tapebearing at least one indicium, means for advancing said program tape ina direction parallel to its length; a motor operable in response toelectrical impulses coupled to drive said tape-advancing means, firstand second sensing stations spaced apart along the length of the programtape; each station respectively producing a signal in response tosensing of an indicium from said program tape, means for feeding arecord; twospeed driving means; coupling means between said drivingmeans and the record feeding means; said coupling means being operableto transmit drive to the record feeding means at a selected one of thetwo speeds, the coupling means including means for generating electricalimpulses at a frequency dependent upon the selected speed; means forapplying said electrical impulses to said motor to synchronize movementof the record and said program tape; and control means for operatingsaid coupling means; including speed-modifying means responsive to asignal produced by said first sensing station and to said electricalimpulses to modify the operation of said coupling means to select theslower of said two speeds and means responsive to a signal produced bysaid second sensing station and to said electrical impulses to disablesaid coupling means to bring to rest a record being fed; a third sensingstation spaced away from said second sensing station in the directionfrom which the tape is advanced, said third sensing station producing asignal in response to sensing of an indicium from the tape; and meansfor producing a record movement initiating signal; said control meansfurther including means responsive to said initiating signal to selectthe faster of said two speeds in the absence of signals produced by bothsaid first and third sensing stations and to select the slower of saidtwo speeds if a signal is produced by at least one of the first andthird sensing stations concurrently with said initiating signal. 2.Apparatus as claimed in claim 1 including a printer operable to printcharacters in predetermined line on a record fed by said record-feedingmeans, the printer being arranged to print at a predetermined printingposition a single line of characters in one operation; in which saidelectrical impulses correspond respectively one to each of the lines onthe record in which characters may be printed; in which the program tapecarries indicia corresponding to lines in which characters are requiredto be printed; in which said second sensing station is so positionedrelative to the program tape that in response to the occurrence of asignal produced by said second sensing station the record is brought torest with the corresponding line at said printing position; and in whichsaid first and third sensing stations are spaced away from said secondsensing station in the direction from which said program tape isadvanced respectively to scan successive areas of the program tapeadjacent the second sensing station, said successive areas eachextending along the length of the tape to a distance corresponding to atleast twice the spacing between adjacent ones of said line positions onthe record in which characters may be printed.